In my recent book, All Things Leadership, I speak about how selfless leaders all encourage their teams. I state,
They always encourage their team members, whether in private, publicly, face-to-face, electronically, or through social media. Selfless leaders always build others up, never putting down or calling out members of their team in order to enforce their positional power or to cover for their own feelings of inadequacy or fear.
I’m restating this because every so often I come across the news that a leader has broken this very important rule by devaluing members of their team. Sometimes it’s done casually or as a joke, but I can’t speak strongly enough of the hurt that can be caused when someone who is giving of themselves and their gifts and talents is told that they could easily be replaced. Particularly when dealing with volunteers, but paid staff as well, it is critical for the leader of a team to constantly build people up in every context. I guess it could be argued that people should have a thicker skin, or be more confident in their ability to use their God-given gifts, but let’s be honest, we’re talking about people. People are fragile. They have tremendous pressures in their lives and usually there is someone who is causing them to already question their abilities and value. They don’t need their leader to be devaluing them, especially in public. If we want to be a real leader, one whom people admire and want to follow, we must build people up and never ever devalue them.
Another of my familiar themes has to do with privilege: not the privilege we have by serving others, which leads to the ultimate compliment when people want to follow us, but rather privilege that some leaders mistakenly believe is theirs merely because of their position. It may manifest itself in many different ways, but it comes down to a sense of entitlement and ego. Don’t get me wrong; I realize there are perks of being in a leadership position and there is nothing wrong with enjoying the benefits of working hard and making a difference in people’s lives. However, the perks must be accepted with gratitude and humility, and not because one feels that they deserve special treatment. Servant, authentic, and selfless leaders all put the good of others above their own interests. It’s part of their DNA. They serve first because they must.
This past year, a great book came out, Leaders Eat Last, which discusses the topic of privilege in great detail. It quotes the nineteenth century philosopher, Goethe: “You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.” So very true, however I will be bold and add to Goethe’s thoughts by saying you can also judge a leader’s character by what he feels he is privileged to have or the way he’s treated compared to those who he leads. When the group sits down to eat, does he get served first? Does he help clean up? Does he dictate what is to be served? If the answer is yes to any of these questions, they are not a servant leader, but one who believes they are more important than the others on the team.
Take a moment and evaluate your leadership style. Do your teammates feel valued? Do you eat last? Think about it. I will do the same.
Lead well.